Myanmar GDP to stagnate as conscription chases away workers: World Bank

Economic size remains smaller than when military ousted Suu Kyi's government

20240612 Myanmar people fleeing to India

People fleeing Myanmar run across a bridge at the border village of Zokhawthar, Champhai district, in India's northeastern state of Mizoram, on Nov. 15, 2023. © Reuters

THOMPSON CHAU, Contributing writer

BANGKOK -- Relentless conflict and the military's imposition of compulsory conscription are driving Myanmar's economy into a deepening crisis, according to the latest World Bank analysis.

The bank predicts Myanmar's gross domestic product will grow 1% in the year through next March. In December, the institution forecast growth of 2% for the civil war-torn country. The bank said in its report released on Wednesday that the slower growth "is largely due to the persistence of high inflation and constraints on access to labor, foreign exchange, and electricity."

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